A Framework to Study Start-Up Conditions, Burn-Out and Start-Up Success

Due to their potential to create innovation and jobs, business start-ups are positively associated with economic growth. However, seizing entrepreneurial opportunities requires founders not only to contribute mentally, but also expend physical effort. The stress that founders experience during start-up bears a high risk of provoking burn-out symptoms, which in turn jeopardizes the start-up’s success and the founders’ well-being. Yet, despite their practical relevance, no empirical study has so far shed light on the conditions leading to burn-out symptoms and their consequences in the start-up context. Thus, to set the stage for an international initiative to empirically research this topical field, we develop hypotheses, formulate research propositions, and identify well-suited and validated survey instruments for measuring the key constructs. The suggested research framework is suitable for answering two interlinked research questions: (1) What impact do start-up conditions have on the development of burn-out symptoms of founders? (2) What impact do burn-out symptoms of founders in the start-up phase have on start-up success and the founders’ well-being? The paper contributes to the scientific and practical dialogue on the conditions that are conducive to successful start-ups by placing special emphasis on the founders’ mental and physical well-being. It takes the academic research community as well as policy makers, funding agencies, health-sector representatives and entrepreneurs one decisive step closer towards a support framework for innovative start-ups, which adequately takes into account the founders’ well-being and which, thus, accommodates developed countries’ struggle for sustainable economic growth.